The prospect of flying a plane is one that intrigues many and scares some. But for anybody, gaining the ability to fly a plane while you’re still in high school is an admirable feat. Nick Yoder (‘19) has done just that, and shared with me about his journey towards cruising the skies.
Nick’s passion for flying began back when he was a kid, when he liked planes over any other toys. Once he was in high school, he flew on a plane for the first time to Paraguay for a learning trip, and then took a flight school J-term given by Calvin. He was fascinated by his first flight and was motivated by the J-term to learn more.
Once Nick started to pursue flight training at the Goshen airport, the person that helped him most was his flight instructor. Nick said that he has learned so much and has really enjoyed his studying. He started this process this past summer, and has put around 30-40 hours in so far. Now that soccer season is over, he hopes to be able to dedicate more time to flying.
Nick is hoping to have his private pilot’s license by December or January. As for after high school, Nick plans to go to college to study flight, and then pursue a career in flying either as a commercial pilot or a corporate pilot.
The most important thing that Nick wants people to know about flying is that it’s accessible to everyone. He told me, “The sky is literally not the limit,” and wants pilot hopefuls to pursue their dreams, just as he did.